What a great start - prepare for the next level!

[EvilDragon]

We had a really, really succesful start and reached over 500 orders after a few days already (and 600 if you count in the remaining pre-preorders!)

You can always find a live statistic here:
http://p.rdw.se/pyra-preorder.html

That means:
We already passed the absolute minimum number needed for a small mass production run of 500.
After only a couple of days! You guys absolutely rock!

Of course, we're now aiming for the next goal... producing 1000 units. With 750 preorders, we should have enough to start the production of those.

Right now, sales are slowing down a bit, which is totally normal for crowdfunding projects.



1. Let's spread the word!

Up until now, we have NOT approached any newssites in order to give the regular readers and long-time-followers the chance to grab one of the first units.
But now the time has come to spread the word and let others know!
That's why we created a PressKit which includes many free-to-use pictures as well as texts that explain the motivation and idea behind the Pyra.

You can use them anywhere you like: Spread the words via Social Media, forums, etc.!
You can also help translating the texts of the PressKit, head to this thread to help out.

And while you're at it, let us know which newssites you think we should approach at this thread here.


2. About voucher codes and pre-pre-order voucher codes and BitCoins

I made a small mistake setting up the pre-order and therefore, if you ordered May 1st within the first hour, you didn't receive a pre-order voucher code.
Don't panic! I'm currently creating them manually and you'll receive it eventually!
And if you didn't receive anything until Sunday night, drop me a PM or email (evildragon@openpandora.org).

About pre-preorder vouchers:
Sane as the Pre-Order voucher, the codes are NOT in your account but have been sent to you via eMail.
In case you can't find your pre-pre-order voucher code anymore, please do contact me, I can resend it to you.

If you pre-ordered via BitCoins:
This will take a few days. I've got a limit of 1000 EUR per day with BitPay (but absolutely no transfer costs), so that's 1 - 3 orders per day.
If you try to pay and receive an error from BitPay, it means my limit for the day is already reached.
Simply wait until I resend the email to you - I'm now handling this manually, so in case you haven't received a mail to complete your BitCoin payment: Don't panic!


3. Some information about the LCD

Even though I was mostly busy replying to mails and working on the PressKit, I tried running a few games on the Pyra Prototype that have ghosting issues on the Pandora: Like Phoenix (Atari 2600) where the bullets are nearly invisible, and Sonic 2 and 3, where the green trees turn the sky black with scrolling.

I wanted to record that on video for you, however, the camera can only do 25fps which is horrible for recording screens that run with 60fps.

But I can tell you: Pyras LCD is WAY better in that regards. I haven't seen ANY ghosting, it's a crisp and clean image!

And: Scanline-Simulation looks a LOT better as well, due to the higher resolution. They look great!


That's it for now!
Back to replying emails - and hopefully, I'll find time to do some videos soon

 

[Wrath Of Khan]

Good stuff. I'll see what I can do about posting on forums, sites and such throughout the week. We need more Pyra pre-orders.

 

[tigerroast]

Good stuff. I'll see what I can do about posting on forums, sites and such throughout the week. We need more Pyra pre-orders.

Just make sure the forum isn't full of snot-nosed bastards. I tried on Phoronix, to no avail.

 

[Urben]

Maybe it is a good idea to take a week free from regular work to travel around to important tech-site-desks to show them your prototype. This way you dont have to spare units you are not sure to get back and to impress with yourself. Or is it unprofessional to not let this do a coworker?

 

[comradekingu]

Most people don't read, and aren't the idiot in the comment field.
Even though some have the wrong idea, most take away what matters.

Meeting the threshold of takers makes it a lot easier for publications to write about it.

 

[castlefox]

@EvilDragon What did the manufacturer list the LCD response time as?
Any idea on what the input lag is?

 

[Silent-Hunter]

Still awaiting news on the US mobile chips, I heard you could get them in smaller amounts, as samples or from a reseller or something?

 

[Xcl4m4t10n]

@EvilDragon, here is the Spanish text, can you please add it to the owncloud? I want to send it to some spanish press websites but I preffer link the article instead of paste the huge text:

Spoiler

El Crowfunding para la "DragonBox Pyra" comenzó el 1 de mayo de 2016, en la media noche alemana. En tan solo 3 días, la campaña recibió alrededor de 600 reservas (aproximadamente el 75% de lo necesario para comenzar la producción).



Después de 3 años, con una inversión de 200.000 euros para el diseño y desarrollo de este dispositivo, se logró un prototipo completamente funcional siendo este probado y refinado desde principios de febrero.



A pesar de no haber fijado una fecha de lanzamiento por el momento, preveemos el envío del primer paquete de “Pyra” para finales de este año.



La "DragonBox Pyra" (sucesora de la "OpenPandora") cuenta con incontables mejoras y algunas características no incluidas en cualquier otro dispositivo portátil como son:



- Completamente abierta: Con un sistema operativo GNU/Linux de código libre y un hardware de igual filosofía además de un diseño pensado para ser fácilmente hackeado, reparado y modeado. Incluso s han liberado los planos de todos los componentes para que cualquier persona pueda modificarlos a gusto.



- Control completo: Pantalla táctil, teclado QWERTY retroiluminado, controles para videojuegos, sticks analógicos y cuatro botones laterales.



- Memoria ampliable: 32 gigas de memoria interna (eMMC), dos ranuras SDXC para tarjetas de tamaño completo y una interna para tarjetas microSDXC.



- Juega con amigos: Dos puertos USB 2.0-A, un puerto microUSB-B OTG, jack para micrófono y/o auriculares (o altavoces) y un puerto micro HDMI. ¡Conecta todo lo que quieras! Además la comunidad desarrollará poco a poco una lista de dispositivos compatibles.



- Gran conectividad inalámbrica: Bluetooth 4.1, Wifi abgn (2.4 / 5 GHz) y conectividad LTE/3G/GPRS para algunos modelos.



- Total anonimato: No requiere ningún tipo de registro, nadie en “DragonBox” revisará tus opciones o perseguirá tus datos.



- Diseño modular: En el futuro se podrá sustituir la CPU (junto con la GPU y otros componentes) sin tener que comprar todo de nuevo, por lo que el ahorro será mayor. Además se podrá incluso sustituir partes por separado (por poner un ejemplo, si en el futuro saliera una pantalla de mayor tamaño, el diseño está pensado para que se pueda sustituir solo la mitad de arriba. ¡Incluso se puede desmontar la parte de arriba o la de abajo sin tocar la otra!).



- “Transparencia ante todo”: Todas las decisiones son hechas y discutidas por la comunidad en los foros de “DragonBox” y en su blog.



- Comunidad y soporte: La Pyra será llevada hasta el límite por una comunidad amistosa y entusiasta que está participando de forma activa en los foros. ¡Incluso los principales desarrolladores recibirán un prototipo para tener bastante software listo el día de la salida! Además prácticamente todo el catálogo de la “OpenPandora” se podrá ejecutar con pocas modificaciones en la “Pyra”.



- Producido con calidad Europea: Con un chip diseñado en USA, la carcasa en Grecia y terminado en Alemania.



- “Siempre conmigo”: Una pantalla de 5 pulgadas a 720p (193,72 PPP) lo hace perfecto para llevar a todos lados. ¡Tiene el mismo tamaño que una Game Boy Clásica!



- Modo móvil: El módem opcional LTE/3G/GPRS se traduce en servicios de telefonía: No solo puede usarse como un portátil con tarifa de datos si no que puede incluso sustituir a tu móvil.



Todas estas características, hacen a la "DragonBox Pyra" perfecta para el trabajo y el ocio, en la calle o en casa, sin necesidad de cableado molesto.



Dependiendo del modelo, el precio final estará entre los 500 y los 630 euros (sin los gastos de envío o las tasas que se aplicarán dependiendo de tu lugar de residencia).



Lógicamente el precio puede ser comparado con otros productos de distribuidores mas conocidos en distintos mercados. En nuestro caso puedes tener claro de que no estás llenando los bolsillos de personas no involucradas en el proyecto. La operación de crear a la “Pyra” es una operación a muy menor escala comparada con producciones realizadas por multinacionales de gran capital, por lo que podemos decir orgullosos que el precio es justo, incluso para los usuarios casuales.



Cuanto mas gente se nos una, mas justo será para todos.



Esta inversión se destina a la fabricación de un dispositivo de alta calidad, con características que hacen único al producto, hecho en Europa y una libertad que no se encuentra en cualquier otro dispositivo móvil.



Soporta a tus vecinos desarrolladores de código y hardware abierto: ¡Compra una Pyra!

Here is the specs text:

Spoiler

Especificaciones técnicas:

La "Pyra" ha sido construida de forma modular y consiste en la siguietes tres partes:

1. Placa principal
2. Placa gráfica
3. Placa CPU

Estas placas pueden ser remplazadas individualmente por el usuaro, por ejemplo, cuando un nuevo modelo (como podría ser una CPU mas moderna) esté disponible, haciendo que el sistema sea facilmente actualizable.

El sistema base incluido en la placa principal:

- Tamaño: Aproximadamente 139x84x29mm
- Altavoces de alta calidad y una rueda analógica para el volumen (que tambien puede ser reprogramada para usarse en otros menesteres, por ejemplo, para adjustar el brillo de la pantalla)
- Puestos para auriculares, microfono incluido, salida HDMI y motor vibrtorio Forcefeedbak
- Gran bateria para una duración extrema (6000 mAh)
- Controles para juegos (D-Pad, 4 botones laterales y 6 botones frontales)
- Dos controles analógicos muy precisos y con la posibilidad de ser pulsados hacia dentro, lo que añade dos botones mas
- Teclado QWERTY con retroiluminación ajustable
- Wifi 802.11a/b/g/n y Bluetooth 4.1 integrados
- Dos ranuras SDXC
- 2 entradas USB de tamaño completo (una de ellos puede ser usada como una entrada eSATA con un pequeño adaptador), un micro USB 3.0 y un micro USB para el modo depuración y el control de la carga eléctrica
- Leds RGB totalmente configurable para notificaciones y otras cosas
- Modulos 3G7$G opcionales así como otros sensores

Placa CPU:

- Texas Instruments OMAP 5 SoC
2x ARM Cortex-A15 @ 1.5Ghz con NEON SIMD
2x ARM Cortex-M4
PowerVR™ SGX544-MP2
Vivante GC320 acelerador 2D
4GB RAM, 32GB de almacenamiento interno

Placa gráfica:

- 720p 5" LCD
- Pantalla tactil resistiva

 

[ekianjo]

will do my bit on pandoralive but i am currently on vacation... just wait a little

 

[pimaster]

I think we need a short 30-60 second video to grab people's attention. Text alone will not sell this thing and the latest video of the working device is 10 minutes long and still has the 3D printed back.
Something that shows the removable battery with the microSD/Sim slot, shows the device booting, shows off some gaming with Sonic/Mario/Zelda and then launching an everyday app like Libre Office or gimp.
No need to go into the specs. No conversation about the development process. You'll need to mention that it is at pre-order stage whilst ramping into production.
Mention that it is running stock Debian but that doesn't stop you from running Arch, Ubunutu or anything else.
The worst bit is that it takes time which is what ED seems to be running short of

Have the prototype units made it into the hands of those that purchased them? Starting to wish I had jumped on that boat so I could do some photos/videos myself.

 

[Ted]

That's why we created a PressKit which includes many free-to-use pictures as well as texts that explain the motivation and idea behind the Pyra.

The technical specifications mentioned 2x A15, does this means two A15 CPUs, or the A15 is a dual core CPU?

As we are geeks, is it possible use the term "FDD-LTE" rather than "EU LTE"?

Sent from my SHIELD Tablet using Tapatalk

 

[Ted]

Does the Pyra is an open source / GNU hardware? i.e. everyone can download the circuit diagram and produce (modify) the hardware freely? If so, shell we add this point to the presskit?

Sent from my SHIELD Tablet using Tapatalk

 

[WizardStan]

FDD doesn't refer to a region, it refers to way the band is shared. North American LTE are also FDD. It's called "EU LTE" because it is the specific FDD bands used in the EU. The US LTE model uses the specific FDD bands used by North America.

 

[Urben]

Cloud Readme:
"Quick information regarding the pictures:
The color of the Pyra has NOT yet been decided on.
The transparent case is ONLY being used with the prototype, as it helps finding issues.
The final case will be opaque, of course."

 

[Blue Shadow]

Does the Pyra is an open source / GNU hardware? i.e. everyone can download the circuit diagram and produce (modify) the hardware freely? If so, shell we add this point to the presskit?

Yes, the schematics will be released and modifications are encouraged. (edit: but there was no specific license mentioned yet.)

It is mentioned in the common Info Document in the press kit - howewer it seems this it not yet translated to english.

 

[zoranc]

About pre-preorder vouchers:
Sane as the Pre-Order voucher, the codes are NOT in your account but have been sent to you via eMail.
In case you can't find your pre-pre-order voucher code anymore, please do contact me, I can resend it to you.

Thanks for this clarification! Now I was able to transform my pre-pre-order into a pre-order.

 

[WizardStan]

Yes, the schematics will be released and modifications are encouraged. It is mentioned in the common Info Document in the press kit - howewer it seems this it not yet translated to english.

ED's said he'd release them, but hasn't said under which license yet. I wouldn't release any official statement about that until he's decided: some people can get pretty militant over the open source licensing, and if it's undecided it could cause a negative backlash from lots of sources.

 

[Blue Shadow]

ED's said he'd release them, but hasn't said under which license yet. I wouldn't release any official statement about that until he's decided: some people can get pretty militant over the open source licensing, and if it's undecided it could cause a negative backlash from lots of sources.

I did'nt say anything about the license, but you're right, maybe I shouldn't leave the "GNU"-part in the quote as this might be misleading.
edit: I think it's clarified now

 

[Razy]

ED's said he'd release them, but hasn't said under which license yet. I wouldn't release any official statement about that until he's decided: some people can get pretty militant over the open source licensing, and if it's undecided it could cause a negative backlash from lots of sources.

Well, the intention to release the schematics has already been publicly declared in the Pyra's main page under the header "Everything is friendly and open!" "Full schematics will be available: You could. e.g. design your own custom mainboard and use Pyra's CPU board to run it."

It's true that it doesn't state under which licence it will be done so, but it doesn't look like it could lead to false assumptions as far as I can tell.

 

[shaddim]

Well, the intention to release the schematics has already been publicly declared in the Pyra's main page under the header "Everything is friendly and open!" "Full schematics will be available: You could. e.g. design your own custom mainboard and use Pyra's CPU board to run it."

It's true that it doesn't state under which licence it will be done so, but it doesn't look like it could lead to false assumptions as far as I can tell.

Well, I have to say I'm currently pretty confused about it: Even without declaring a concrete license it's not clear to me what is the intention? Creation of a (limited) hobbyist ecosystem (non-commercial "modding" and fixing) or creation of a free and open architecture ("PC like" -> commercial clones possible)?

While I agree the license selection is a very delicate question, I would suggest deciding this as fast as possible to minimize confusion and to be able to advertise to the appropriate domains and groups.

(FSF, EFF etc ... or not FSF: if the only thing left for Pandora being the GPU driver for a RYF certificate, the FSF could be included & motivated to fix this remaining problem )

(as small hint: the old Pandora schematics are currently also not clearly licensed, they could act as "test" or indication where Pyra might end... either real "Open source hardware" or "modding friendly" )

(PS: personally, i would strongly prefer real open source hardware, and also believe no commercial risk for ED would evolve from that )